Statement: Springboks issue and apology to the All Blacks

 newspaper in 2009

SA Rugby issued a formal apology to the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU) on Monday for the sequence of events that led to the premature conclusion of the Haka ahead of the Rugby Championship match between the Springboks and the All Blacks.

SA Rugby chief Rian Oberholzer says he has apologised in person and have written to the NZRFU to formally express their regret for what occurred.

“It was never the intention to schedule any activities that would coincide with such an iconic moment of any Test match against the All Blacks. That it occurred was a result of timekeeping challenges and simple human error,” said Oberholzer.

“In the confusion, the crowd’s excited cheering was mistaken to have marked the conclusion of the Haka by an unsighted sound engineer who restarted the music programme. It was highly regrettable but in no way deliberate.”

The legendary fly-half, who won a 97 caps for England and the British & Irish Lions between 1998 and 2011, went toe-to-toe with some of the greatest players to ever lace up a pair of boots during his stellar career.

DID YOU KNOW? Wilkinson followed Buddhist principles and teachings to help control his perfectionist tendencies, according to an interview he gave with The Times

Dominici played 67 times for his country and won the French championship five times with Stade Français before retiring in 2008. In recent years he had worked as a pundit for French radio and TV before his death in 2020.

WILKINSON SAID: "His opportunism, his flair, his game reading, his sheer explosivity to really change a game is something that sticks in my memory.”

DID YOU KNOW? Dominci appeared in three World Cups for his country in 1999, 2003 and 2007, scoring eight tries over that time.

Holds the Six Nations record for most tries with 26 and was chosen Player of the Tournament in the 2006, 2007 and 2009, leading Ireland to one Grand Slam and three Triple Crowns. Europe’s finest.

WILKINSON SAID: “The ability to change the game in a second, a heartbeat, with his movement, with his skill, his game reading but also his leadership.”

DID YOU KNOW? O’Driscoll is the all-time Irish try scorer and has led his country more times than any other player

WILKINSON SAID: “Someone incredibly fierce but very very down to earth” and “at times he’s exactly what a team needs,” according to Wilkinson.

DID YOU KNOW? Botha is regularly listed in 'greatest ever' sides and coach Bernard Laporte said he was the greatest player he ever coached

Lifting the 2011 World Cup in his backyard was a fitting tribute to one of the greatest ever All Blacks, but he went on to secure true legendary status as he continued for four more years, breaking record after record and uniquely hoisting the Webb Ellis trophy for a second time.

WILKINSON SAID: "“A guy that stood the test of time and has remained at the best, the highest level of the game for that time. Finishing second best was never an option."

DID YOU KNOW? McCaw led his country to World Cup glory in 2011 and 2015

Lomu's one of a kind and the impression he left on so many lives while playing for the All Blacks was vividly illustrated by the reaction to his death in November 2015.

WILKINSON SAID: "One of the most recognisable characters in World Rugby and a man who sparked fear in the eyes of opposition defences. The guy is quite a remarkable rugby legend and deserves to be so. No list would be complete without him.”

DID YOU KNOW? Lomu scored seven tries during the 1995 World Cup and added a further eight in 1999